Fire and Brimstone
by IvoryRose888
Summary: Things aren't all fun and games at Fairy Tail, but, good thing for Lucy, she has a loyal companion who's always there when she needs him the most... (NatsuxLucy angsty fluff)


"LUUUUUUUUUCY!" 

"Lucyyy?" 

"Come on, Luce, where are you?" 

"Lucy! If you come out you can have my best fish!" 

Natsu grinned down at his best friend as they approached the end of the hallway, pointing to the left as he said, "You go that way, Happy, and I'll check down there." 

"Divide and conquer!" Happy cried as he hopped into the air, releasing his wings and taking off down the corridor. 

Chuckling, Natsu started the opposite way, his grin fading as he progressed further and further with no sign of his friend. The light slapping of the pink-haired mage's sandals echoed throughout the vacant halls of the guild hall as he mulled to himself. "She has to be around here somewhere…" The youth muttered, becoming more discouraged as each room and corner brought another dead end. Where could she be…He and Happy had eagerly burst through Lucy's front door hours earlier, only to be greeted by an empty apartment and a scrawled note that promised she would return soon. Well, it had been two, nearly three, hours now, and Natsu hadn't come upon his blonde guild mate yet. The pinching in his chest that signaled worry for the young wizard had escalated to a punch in his gut that warned him to find her fast. 

"Where on earth…" His blazing orbs detected movement outside a nearby window. Crossing to the panes, Natsu let his gaze roam around the outside world, searching, scouring, for anywhere- He suddenly gasped as his eyes absorbed the melancholy grays and greens of Magnolia's cemetery a ways down the road. "Of course…" He muttered to himself. "It's probably his birthday or something…" 

Turning quickly on his heel, Natsu sped through the corridors and out the front entryway, into the streets of Magnolia. 

"I hope she's not too mad at me for coming." Natsu lamented to himself, but this thought instantly dissipated as he mounted the small hill that was Magnolia's memorial cemetery. After looking around for a second, Natsu's sharp eyes spotted a familiar figure crouched in front of a sizable tombstone. Coming up behind his friend and gazing over her shoulder, he read the stone's inscription:

_Jude and Leila Heartfilia: loving husband, loving wife, and loving parents._

The kind-hearted youth felt a knot rise in his throat as he watched his companion's back tremble and heave as tears streamed down her pale cheeks. Carefully stepping behind and around the girl, Natsu planted himself in the waving grass, inches from Lucy. For a minute, they merely sat in silence. 

"Hey." Natsu finally began. "Happy and I have been looking everywhere for you. Well, I mean, obviously not everywhere since you were here…" He trailed off, his cheeks heating up a bit in spite of himself. 

"I'm sorry I worried you." Lucy apologized, shattering the strained silence between them. 

"Nah, it's fine." Natsu rubbed the back of his neck. "We just, um…wanted to see you, is all." He focused his gaze on the marble marker, blindly reading the chiseled letters to avoid her puffy features. 

"Here." He unwound his beloved scarf from around his neck and wrapped it around Lucy's, looking into her eyes for the first time as he muttered, "This always helps me feel better when I miss Igneel." His cheeks were dusted a bright scarlet as he placed himself back upon the ground. 

Gradually a sniff, then a whimper, then a choked sob hiccupped out of the girl next to him until her body could no longer hold back the flood, and she erupted into a stream of broken wails. Completely taken aback, Natsu stared at the other mage as her whole body convulsed from the onslaught of emotion pouring out of her. Not knowing what else to do, the boy inched closer to his friend and slowly wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close when he felt her quivering form collapse into his embrace. 

"It's okay, Lucy." He muttered into her hair, squeezing his eyes shut against the glaring sun. "You're gonna be alright." They remained this way for a while, until Lucy's cries subsided. Shakily pulling away from him, Lucy rubbed her eyes and glanced at the dirt, suddenly bashful under the concerned youth's gaze. 

"Thank you, Natsu." She whispered into the ivory-shaded cloth, closing her eyes as she took a deep breath and sighed. "I'll be alright now." She gave the boy a wary smile, prompting a broad grin on the other's cheeks. 

"Great!" Natsu exclaimed as he leapt from the soil. "Let's get back to your place!" His eyes widened a bit, and he blushed. "But first...we gotta stop by the guild. I mighta forgotten Happy there..." He confessed, grinning sheepishly. Turning toward her, he reached out a hand as his lips quirked into a half-smile. "Let's go home." 

Smiling warmly now, Lucy slid her hand into Natsu's and followed him down the slope, a sweet elation blooming in her chest as she inhaled the aroma of fire and brimstone.


End file.
